Foot and Mouth

One of my favorite old songs is "I Get Ideas". The essence of the love for the song stems from the fact that when I do get an idea, usually on the kooky side, the idea won't go away until I act on it by either boring my family with it or, expressing it with... Continue Reading →

Our New Jigsaw Puzzle Salon

It's been a little over 5 years since my wife and I became jigsaw puzzle fanatics. The most difficult aspect of this obsession is deciding what to do with the completed puzzles. Puzzle fanatics want to enjoy the fruits of their efforts. Several years ago I began displaying completed puzzles on my garage walls. My... Continue Reading →

Gullibility

Allow me to take you back to a simpler time--- 1983. How did we manage our lives without the internet? I find it hard to believe we watched TV without the ability to "fast forward" i.e. skip commercials. Today, I can watch a prerecorded football game in 60 minutes vs 3.5 hours in real time... Continue Reading →

Soviet Jewry and AL Gore Rhythm

By now, I'm sure all internet users understand what algorithms are and how they work. If you have no life, read the works of Yuval Noah Harari to better understand how advertising has evolved from mostly passive presentation to the relentless brain-beating with algorithms. I'm 79 years old, and like so many my age, slow... Continue Reading →

Storytellers

I'm back. In the past six months I've suffered a string of ailments; starting with "Drunk Elbow". It's a real aliment. Look it up. My "Elbow" triggered an extremely high pulse, chest pain, and required a 911 call. The symptoms lasted for several months. Next came a fall resulting in a torn ligament in my... Continue Reading →

I’m Warning You!

I'm a logophile. --- obsessed with words, their exact definition, and correct usage. I've had one of my scribbled, mostly illegible, notes sitting on my desk for several weeks now. It says "2 minute warning". The term's been used ever since the inception of the NFL, the National Football League. It came about due to... Continue Reading →

“Let’s All Be Calm”

My daily exercise, for the moment, is a 2 mile walk. Our home sits in a relatively small development which includes a small park, about 2 acres. I love it. The park is named after its benefactor, Mary Hayes Barber Holmes. As you approach the park itself, a stairway takes you up to the walking... Continue Reading →

Leaders and Liters

As you know by now, I'm a word guy. Any play on words is probably the most fun I'll have all day. The latest one that squirmed out of my brain occurred this morning, Hence, the title of this article. I found the following using the A-EYE genius to assure you that the title words... Continue Reading →

“… to the shores of Tripoli”

Throughout the 1990's, I was an avid reader, accumulating a library of well over 100 historical and documentary titles. No fiction. As I write this I cannot identify exactly why in the very early 2000's, I quit reading books altogether. I suspect the internet, cable TV, watching NFL football, and buying my own business had... Continue Reading →

Bobz Rules of Order.

No need for formalities here. The title of this piece is the "every man's" version of Robert's Rules of Order. Not to be confused with Robert's rules of Odor but, that's a totally different topic for a future article. Major media, right now, is all giddy over the prospects of Presidential "debates". This years "debate"... Continue Reading →

Blue Marble. The View from 18268.313 miles

Imagine, and, we can only imagine, how many articles currently sit on the internet containing this article's title. To my surprise, with the help of AI, I just learned that there are only 2 authentic Blue Moon photos; "NASA took a new "Blue Marble" photo of Earth in December 2022, the first since the original... Continue Reading →

Magnetic Levitation.

Hyperbole Alert! Reading the following requires an open mind. It won't be easy, but once you see the numerous benefits of the elimination of commercial air travel in the U.S., it's a "no brainer". Let's briefly look at the impact that commercial flight has on our nation and the world. Why do people avoid living... Continue Reading →

Lessons

Somewhere around 60 years ago, I considered myself a golfer. Actually, it was only one of several pastimes I used to hang out with my buddies, drink to excess, and just have fun. "Hanging out" and drinking are topics for another time. Right now, I want to tell you about the first golf lesson of... Continue Reading →

“Saving” Money

Let me take you back now to 1991. While waiting for some financial people to apply for a mortgage, I chose to kill time by browsing in a book store. I happened to pick up a book about advertising. The first line in the book was --- "All advertising is bulls--t" I'm not a big... Continue Reading →

Kicked Out of Chicago

It's summer of 1966. My wife-to- be and I are enjoying the peak of our pre-nuptial romance spending every free moment, week-ends and just about every evening, together. We'll be married that year in December but it's only June. It's a Sunday morning. With no particular plans, other then to be together on a clear... Continue Reading →

“Crappy Car Campaign”

C.C.C. or, the Crappy Car Campaign is my wild and crazy idea for raising large contributions to your favorite NPO, or Non-Profit Organization. My initial research tells me that in reality, the idea may not be as crazy as it initially sounds. The inspiration for the concept came from the real neighbors we had about... Continue Reading →

We Knead Your Dough

Where do I start?  At the beginning?  O.K. It all started in Kansas City in 1987. Just another week-end jaunt down Ward Boulevard with 2 teen-age kids in tow aimlessly wandering the shopping mall(s) to find ways of disposing of our disposable income.  Having no idea how that this would be a watershed decision for our future, we stopped at a bakery. Not your... Continue Reading →

Empathic vs. Emphatic?

"Empathic Listening". This story is 100% true. I've subtitled this brief ditty: "Bob's  Attempt at Nuanced Leadership". Malcolm is a department manager reporting to me, the Operations Mgr. He has a problem. His management approach is best described as bigoted bullying. But, as his boss, it’s my responsibility to give him the opportunity to correct his behavior. Too many managers believe... Continue Reading →

Do It!

For about the last 6 months I have a little mind game that I use first thing in the morning. I invite you to try it. Start your day with the realization that you/we have a choice --- a critical choice. We can choose to pursue a positive daily goal, or we can dwell on... Continue Reading →

Fishing With Dad

My father was a fishing fanatic. Around the age of 11 or 12, I was, by default, his partner. I say "default", because all of my 8 siblings, of which, 6 were girls, became invisible and dodged the privilege of fishing with Dad on Saturday mornings. Dad needed a partner. I was no good at... Continue Reading →

Homeward Bound

We were sitting in a railway station --- had our tickets for our destination. We were on a tour of one day stops --- a dozen small towns the names of which I can't recall --- our suitcases in hand. No guitar! Every stop had been neatly planned a few months ago over the phone... Continue Reading →

Cold Tongue

Unless you watched MSNBC on Wednesday morning this week you won't know what a cold tongue is. If you are a climate scientist you probably do. But let your imagination run free for a couple of minutes and respond to this article with your first guess. A couple of months ago the mainstream media was... Continue Reading →

CEO Bob, Update.

The following article was written in April of last year. Note the last line, "Stay tuned." I'm sure all of you have been riveted to your in box waiting. This past month I've been busy converting my stack of completed puzzle into home furnishings. The one you see is Bambi as a teenager (ha ha)... Continue Reading →

Street Vendor

And there I was. Selling my wares on the street, yesterday, August 6th. Didn't sell a single one. I will not be deterred. Look for me back on the streets of Pittsboro on September 3rd.

Jigsaw Puzzles and Mindfulness

In Dec. of 2019, Rob Gronkowski, NFLsuperstar, was being interviewed as he assembled a jigsaw puzzle in his kitchen as therapy for his concussions he suffered throughout his career. This was pre-pandemic so my wife and I had never even thought about jigsaw puzzles until then. As we watched, I casually turned to my wife... Continue Reading →

Costco

This is an unabashed, unpaid endorsement of Costco stores. I've never done this before for any company, but here's the exception. For about 10 years, every visit to Costco has been a positive experience for us. My wife and I always wind up buying more items than we had planned. I figured out why ----... Continue Reading →

Gregory Arias

"Bob" is such a nothing name. It means or signifies nothing. It can be a noun or a verb, but it's never a reference to a person. There are at least 28 noun and 13 verb definitions for "bob". How did I wind up with the name? It's an abbreviation for Robert. Unfortunately, when I... Continue Reading →

Fecks and Fetters

(A Boomer Logophile’s Rant) Unfettered? Feckless? We think we know what these words mean. But what do the root words mean, where did they originate? If something is now unfettered, logic dictates that at some point in the past it was fettered. Similarly, if I’m now “feckless”, I must have had some “feck” in the past.  A former colleague... Continue Reading →

V and V

Vitale and Viviana This is a tale of two very special rabbits. Their special skills and intelligence are the side effects of being subjects in a clinical psychology experiment to test the effects of varying wavelengths of light on brain function.   Researchers have found that; “Pulsed transcranial red/near-infrared light therapy using light-emitting diodes improves cerebral blood flow and... Continue Reading →

We Need More Lawyers

I went shopping for a ladder. I mistakenly began to read the attached warning labels.In no time at all, I was puzzled. So many labels attached --- mostly stating the obvious like, “don’t fall off” “falling can lead to injury”. There are hundreds of labels (not all on the same ladder). With my intellectual curiosity aroused, I quickly jumped... Continue Reading →

Falling Leaves 2023

This morning, while sitting out on the screen porch, I wondered how much longer I would need to wait for the last 2 remaining leaves on my Redbud tree to fall. If you recall, as I'm sure you will, I will not rake up the grounded leaves until ALL leaves are on the ground. I... Continue Reading →

Last Tuesday’s Election.

The following was written by my brother. Literally, I could not have said it better. Well, yesterday was a very long day. I felt like an old man after working from 6am to midnight at the polls.  Wait! -- I am an old man. This election marks the first time in my experience that a security... Continue Reading →

What Could Go Wrong

Here’s what makes our current voting system work so well. Each of the 50 states control their own elections using a large % of volunteers. The inherent diversity of procedures makes it so much more difficult for any one bad actor to interfere. The people who run the elections are unsung patriotic heroes.  Most of... Continue Reading →

Obesity

Obesity falls under the heading of a pandemic. A Pandemic is defined as an epidemic which spreads over multiple countries or continents. Biologists can create vaccines for physical ills but, there will never be a vaccine to cure obesity. The cure lies in awareness, education, and our commitment to changing our behavior. The following is... Continue Reading →

Cooper

Cooper has belonged to both major political parties and has run for local public office under both banners. Now, in his own words, “I’m for myself!”

Tattoo

In case anyone tells you that the tattoo process isn’t painful, don’t believe it. It’s extremely painful.

The Cost of Prejudice

I’ve been laboring over several long articles and in the process getting nothing done for publication. It’s my blog. I can make new rules if I so desire. New Rule: If I have a brief anecdote worth sharing, I will publish it! The title of this one refers to a monumentally stupid stock trading decision I made in... Continue Reading →

Titanium Glow

Digression Alert! If you have no life and want to learn more about Titanium, google titanium/Wikipedia. I dare you.

Happy

Learning How to Retire. When I first began my blog, I made a deliberate attempt to avoid revealing my age. Who is going to want to read what old people have to say? But when the essence of my blog is my life’s story, I realize now how dumb that was.  I’m 76 years old... Continue Reading →

Sheets

100% Cotton --- Almost. I’m so proud of myself. I figured out last December that the reason I was experiencing serious skin irritation all over my body was the alleged 100% cotton sheets we were using.  The locations of the rashes on me corresponded exactly to my sleeping position. I always sleep on my right... Continue Reading →

Shopping For My Maserati

This time it’s for real. I just completed a 3-hour ride to and from the nearest “Foreign” car dealership. That’s what they call themselves --- “Foreign” A rather peculiar name for a dealership trying to sell cars in North Carolina.  I already own one Maserati. Bright red! My granddaughter, with her cruel sense of humor, gave it to me for Christmas. It’s 3 inches... Continue Reading →

Axe Throwing

Since retiring I have a lot of extra time on my hands. I get up early and stay up relatively late, seldom sleeping more than 7 hours. I stay busy with home improvements, exercising, the stock markets, reading, and TV. Still there are days when it seems I just don’t have enough to do.  This morning as I... Continue Reading →

The War of the Shower Shoes

There’s a great movie, The War of the Roses, starring Kathleen Turner, Michael Douglas, and Danny DeVito. Although 33 years old, it still plays well today. It demonstrates. to the extreme, how one-upmanship between husband and wife can turn ugly real fast.  In the past 24 hours Joan, my wife, and I went through a similar, although much less... Continue Reading →

A Letter From Santa

The following is Santa’s attempt to explain to our 4-year-old great granddaughter why he left a gift for her at Nana and Papa’s house to be opened the day after Christmas. That’s when our family will be celebrating Christmas due to some family members arriving the day after. I didn’t want everyone opening gifts while there were none... Continue Reading →

BOB.

Photo by Los Muertos Crew on Pexels.com There are a lot of guys out there, like me, named Bob, and one, unlike me, named Baab(pronounced bob), which I’ll get to later. The internet has many clever websites extolling the virtues of one of the most likeable palindromes in the English language. The formal version of Bob,... Continue Reading →

What are the Odds?

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com It’s Thanksgiving Day. My swimming pool is closed. My daily exercise will be walking in the neighborhood park with the usual stop to buy lottery tickets. The new numbers look at lot better than the old ones. The odds of winning??? --- Not so much!  As I arrive at the park, I rest at a... Continue Reading →

Falling Leaves

As I ponder while sitting on the screened porch outside first thing this morning with my coffee and cigarette, I realized that I was focused on how many leaves remained on my favorite tree in our back yard. And then I wondered ---- Just how predictable, and boring does your life have to be to get you to the point of counting unfallen leaves? I... Continue Reading →

Sunday Morning Stroll

It’s a beautiful Sunday morning --- nothing but happy thoughts. Due to the swimming pool being closed on Sunday’s, a long walk is the second order of the day, not the first. The first order of the day is still caffeine and nicotine. With that out of the way, time to walk  The first stop on my route is... Continue Reading →

Pee Before You Leave (PBYL)

10/24/2021 Yes! I’ve backtracked to naming my articles with the full date below just in case a literary critic, 19 years from now decides to do ananthology of Bob’s best articles. Its date stamped! On to the task at hand…….. A significant part of my life’s odyssey is influenced by the Packer factor. i.e. The Green Bay... Continue Reading →

Slippery Slope

We were discussing politics and science. My granddaughter and I can do that and still love each other dearly when we’re done. Now, just to prove to her that I do listen, I’m going to elaborate, examine, and dissect an idiom which she used to accent her argument. It’s very common today on the news shows and internet.... Continue Reading →

Extended Family

Photo by Imprensa AgruBanu00ae on Pexels.com I’m all done searching for the world’s best topics, titles, and catchy subject matter. In keeping with my blog’s title, I’ve suddenly realized that my Odyssey includes the present as much as the past. I'll make an effort to write every day, ideally at the peak of the day’s... Continue Reading →

The Depths of Deprivation

It’s here! We’ve hit rock bottom. Up until last Saturday, our family was just fine dealing with all the product shortages being blamed on the Pandemic. But when we called to order a pizza, the message said “due to the labor shortage, we are closed”.  What? One of the pillars of modern American culture is... Continue Reading →

All Cats go to Delaware

I haven’t written a facetious rant in quite a while. Note!!! Facetious!!! Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com Delaware just happened to be on the other end of the bridge. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge is a fascinating sight with a captivating history for a buff like me. After convincing my wife Joan that we will not die... Continue Reading →

Good Morning, Dexter

As I wander along in my personal odyssey, periodically, I bump into a simple, striking realization --- an epiphany.   This morning began just the way I like it. Coffee and a cigarette. Very good/expensive coffee and an organic/healthy/no additive/expensive cigarette. As I puffed and sipped, Dexter showed up to greet me. Dexter’s a hummingbird.  Last... Continue Reading →

Truculent

Can’t help myself. When an obscure adjective comes shooting out of the big screen TV, it hits my brain like a speed bump at 30 MPH. This morning the commentator used “truculent” to describe the Russian leader’s attitude during an interview. My immediate thought was it’s safe to bet that half of the viewers have no idea what it... Continue Reading →

Truth, Trust, Transparency

As far as the substance and value of today’s U.S. political network TV commentary shows go, Fareed Zakaria is the best at giving viewers actual information versus just opinion. Take a look at his biography and sample his show. You’ll learn something.   Listening this morning to one of the world’s renowned diplomats (his name is... Continue Reading →

Yearning (anhelo), Wistfully (pensativo)

I’m going to try to tell you how I feel about Málaga, Spain.  This city sits right on the shore of the Mediterranean Sea in the Iberian Peninsula. The city itself is all about tourism. However, one hour, due North, on thin, unmarked roads sits the village of Sayalonga. I was there in 2015. I keep the attached photo on my favorites... Continue Reading →

Trousers

My last career job was with a federal agency which required wearing a uniform. I worked my way into the position of Supply Logistics which included ordering tailored slacks/pants for 300 officers. The ordering forms referred to them as “trousers”. Not once did I ever hear a fellow officer use the word “trousers”. The supplier offered free tailoring... Continue Reading →

Create a website or blog at WordPress.com

Up ↑